Hello, my name is Tom Baxter. I have been selected for the 23rd Summer Deaflympics Games, which will take place in Samsun, Turkey in July 2017. This will be my 3rd time at the Deaflympics and my 7th time at international competition in my swimming career representing Great Britain.

The reason I am setting up CrowdFunding is, as some of you may know, Deaf Athletes don’t get any funding from the Government or sports organisations and each athlete will have to raise their own funds to be able to take part.

About me- I have been swimming since I was 13 years old and I held a number of British age group and youth records in a mix of events from freestyle, butterfly and medley. Then I swam my first Deaflympics aged 16 back in 2009. Since then I have taken part in 2 European Deaf Swimming Championships and 2 World Deaf Swimming Championships and another Deaflympics Games in 2013. The best achievement was in 2015 when I was a member of the 4x100m freestyle mixed relay team that won a bronze medal at the World Deaf Swimming Championships in Texas setting a British deaf record in the process. Last season, I won the National Deaf Swimming Championships 100m Breaststroke and broke the English Deaf Swimming 50m Freestyle record. Out of the pool, I am a qualified swimming teacher and lifeguard.

Currently, I am coaching at a Masters club and at a swimming organisation during school holidays, as well as training for the Deaflympics. I would be grateful for any financial support you may be able to give me, or, even if you can’t support me directly, could you share this message amongst your friends and others who may be able to contribute towards my costs, by using the links below?

Thank you

Tom